Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995

[F1 5B National jurisdiction for callings of custody cases in a sheriff court S

(1) A calling of criminal proceedings in the sheriff court to which subsection (2) or (3) applies may be dealt with—

(a) in any sheriff court in Scotland, and

(b) by a sheriff of any sheriffdom.

(2) This subsection applies to a calling of criminal proceedings in which the person who is the subject of the proceedings is appearing from custody—

(a) having been arrested by a constable in connection with the matter to which the proceedings relate, and

(b) without having subsequently—

(i) been released from custody, or

(ii) had a court authorise the person’s continued remand in custody.

(3) This subsection applies to a calling of proceedings on petition in which—

(a) the person who is the subject of the proceedings is appearing from custody after a court authorised the person’s remand, and

(b) the hearing is not able to be held in that court due to the closure of the court building by reason of emergency or other special circumstances.

(4) If more than one person is the subject of the proceedings, the reference in subsection (2) or, as the case may be, (3) to the person who is the subject of the proceedings is to be read as referring to any of them.

(5) It is for the Lord Advocate or the procurator fiscal to determine in which sheriff court a calling to which subsection (2) or (3) applies is to be taken.

(6) Where proceedings have come before a sheriff court by virtue of subsection (1), and are proceedings to which subsection (2) applies, the proceedings may continue to be dealt with—

(a) in the same sheriff court, and

(b) by a sheriff of any sheriffdom.

(7) The ability for proceedings to be dealt with by virtue of subsection (6) comes to an end as follows—

(a) in the case of summary proceedings, insofar as the proceedings relate to a charge in respect of which the accused person has tendered a plea of not guilty which has not been accepted by the prosecutor, the proceedings cannot continue to be dealt with by virtue of subsection (6) after the end of the diet at which that plea was tendered,

(b) in the case of proceedings on petition or indictment—

(i) insofar as the proceedings relate to a charge in respect of which the accused person has tendered a plea of not guilty which has not been accepted by the prosecutor, the proceedings cannot continue to be dealt with by virtue of subsection (6) after the end of the diet at which that plea was tendered,

(ii) the proceedings cannot continue to be dealt with by virtue of subsection (6) after the committal of the accused person until liberation in due course of law,

(iii) the first diet, and any proceedings which follow on from it, cannot be dealt with by virtue of subsection (6).

(8) Insofar as the ability to deal with proceedings by virtue of subsection (6) is not brought to an end by subsection (7), proceedings may continue to be dealt with by virtue of subsection (6) until their conclusion.

(9) For the purposes of subsection (6), proceedings on petition and any subsequent proceedings on indictment are to be treated as the same proceedings.]

Textual Amendments

F1 Ss. 5B-5E inserted (1.12.2025) by Criminal Justice Modernisation and Abusive Domestic Behaviour Reviews (Scotland) Act 2025 (asp 14), ss. 9(2), 34(2)(3)(f) (with s. 10)